1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to an improved data processing system and in particular to a method and apparatus for wireless communications. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus for sending text and or voice messages to a digital pager.
2. Description of the Related Art
A pager system is a communications system used to contact a person who may be away from a telephone and whose whereabouts may be unknown. A pager system provides a service to call a person by radio who is absent and transmitting a message to him, such as, for example, a text message or a phone number. A caller typically uses a telephone connected to a public telephone line to contact a pager system to transmit a pager signal to a digital pager unit at which time a called party receives a message. When the caller contacts the pager system, instructions may be given to the caller as to how to input a message to the called party. With numerical messages, the caller typically enters digits using DTMF tones from a telephone device. This numerical message is then forwarded to the called party. Alternatively, the caller may in some instances be able to send a text message to a person carrying a digital pager unit that can receive text, but not E-mail. In such a situation, the caller calls a telephone number that is answered by a third party who is the message carrier. This third party is a person who listens to the caller to obtain the message to be sent to the called party. At that time, the third party enters the message into the pager system, which is then sent to the called party. One drawback of such a system is that messages between the caller and the called party cannot be kept secret because a third party is involved in transferring a message to the called party.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have an improved method and apparatus for sending text messages to a digital pager.
It is one object of the present invention to provide an improved data processing system.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for wireless communications.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for sending text and/or voice messages to a digital pager.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for sending text and/or voice messages to multiple recipients.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus sending text and/or voice messages to a recipient without requiring a third party, such as a message carrier.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for sending messages to a digital pager in a communications system. A voice message is received from a caller, wherein the voice message is to be sent to a pager. The voice message is transformed into a text message, wherein the message is transformed using a speech recognition program in a data processing system. The text message is sent to the digital pager via transmission means.